PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Carina Kaufman-Gutierrez, Deputy Director of Street Vendor Project on Construction Justice Act
2:37:22
·
110 sec
Carina Kaufman-Gutierrez, Deputy Director of the Street Vendor Project, testified in support of the Construction Justice Act. She emphasized the partnership between street vendors and construction workers, and the importance of fair wages and working conditions in the construction industry, particularly for affordable housing projects.
- The Street Vendor Project is a membership-based organization with over 3000 members
- The Construction Justice Act aims to end exploitation in the construction industry and ensure that city subsidies benefit workers and local communities
- The act proposes setting a "just wage" for workers on subsidized housing projects to fight systemic poverty and build generational wealth
Carina Kaufman-Gutierrez
2:37:22
Good afternoon, Sharma.
2:37:23
My name is Karina Kaufman Gutierrez, and I'm the deputy director at the Street vendor project.
2:37:27
We're a membership based organization of over 3000 street vendor members.
2:37:31
And thank you for the opportunity to testify today.
2:37:35
So street vendors and construction workers have a long head of partnership outside of almost every construction site street vendors are there to ensure that workers have access to an affordable healthy meal.
2:37:45
And it's thanks to union organizing that workers even have access to that break to enjoy their vendor meal in the first place.
2:37:52
We are proud to support the construction justice act as part of the construction justice NYC coalition, a grassroots coalition of labor unions, community based organizations, and worker advocates that are committed to ending the exploitation and unjust treatment of New Yorkers employed in the construction industry.
2:38:11
SVP's members continue to hear from our community about the routine exploitation of construction workers by bad actors in the affordable housing industry, which is why we are adding our voices to the demands that our tax dollars be used to uplift workers and not to further their struggles.
2:38:28
Construction workers who build affordable housing are family members, our neighbors, and and our customers, and we see firsthand the exploitation that they face.
2:38:38
We know that low wages are one of the biggest contributors to the housing crisis.
2:38:43
Construction Justice Act ensures that every dollar of city subsidy returns to our neighborhoods through local hires and good wages that can build generational wealth for working families.
2:38:53
It raises worker wages by setting a just wage on subsidized housing.
2:38:57
And it's exactly the type of legislation that working New Yorkers need right now to fight systemic poverty.
2:39:03
Comment the committee for bringing forward this bill, and we urge the swift passage of the Construction Justice Act.
2:39:10
Thank you again for the opportunity to testify.
